On Molecular and Microscopic Science

1869

Special Collections QH273 S6 1869

London: John Murray

Described in her obituary as the ‘Queen of Science’, Scottish-born, Mary Somerville’s first love was mathematics. Self-taught in the family library, Somerville (1780-1872) studied mathematics in secret, as her father had forbidden her to do so. Her interests extended into science, and Somerville published her first scientific work, ‘The Magnetic Properties of the Violet Rays of the Solar Spectrum’, in 1826. She was involved in London’s educated scientific circles, and consulted with the likes of astronomer Sir John Herschel (1792-1871) and computer scientist Charles Babbage (1791-1871). Somerville continued to publish throughout her life on various topics: the mechanics of astronomy, physics, meteorology, and physical geography. This volume was published when she was 89 years old.